Tantalising Tomakin

by Dawn Simpson
(Batemans Bay)

Melville Point, Tomakin

The village of Tomakin sits snugly on the Tomago River, with particularly nice views of the Pacific from the majority of the residences there. It can be located on our Cartoscope map from the Batemans Bay Visitors centre at Map 1 Co-ordinates D - 3.

Follow the George Bass Drive south from Batemans Bay and turn left into Ainslie Parade, then switch to Map 4. A little history on Tomakin, named for a local fisherman THOMAS AKIN. Where the well-known Caravan Park now stands there was just a shack, occupied by a very self-sufficient gentleman, Tom Barling. The village was called ‘SUNPATCH’ for a short period of time by the land developers, who also had a small airstrip to fly in prospective buyers.There were two farms in the area, three cheese factories and a steam driven saw mill was located by the riverbank. The local shop, now a busy hub for locals, was originally operated by Alf Stephens and opened just half a day, once a week.These days Martin and Jo Rose have the Tomakin General Store open and ready to go every day with fresh home baked cakes, including great coffee, Devonshire tea, Portuguese tarts, home made pies, such as Sweet Potato, Bacon and Cheese, gluten free products and hot meals! The aroma of the lamb shanks, permeating from the kitchen made it difficult to get me moving on!If you owe friends a letter, here is the perfect spot to sit and write to them over a great coffee, as there is a red post box on the same corner.The Tomakin General Store can be found on the corner of Kingston Place and Sunpatch Parade, look for folk enjoying a latte under the large umbrellas.Locals treasure the peace and serenity of the village but surprisingly, the area of Tomakin is much larger than just the village. There are approximately 755 folk living within a 7-kilometre radius of this little village which a great deal to offer the casual visitor also.Following Ainslie Parade, one of the many streets named for suburbs of Canberra, we turned into Red Hill Parade and arrived at Melville Point.The views from Melville Point are spectacular and the point was mentioned in my previous story as being one of the best whale watching spots on the Nature Coast. From this great vantage point, you are able to see as far south as Gulaga Mountain with Broulee Island Nature Reserve and Mossy Point in the foreground. The glorious colors of Tomakin Cove couldn’t possibly be reproduced with a camera or a paintbrush, could they?Whilst we were leaning on the handrail, enjoying the contents of our thermos and admiring the view, we chatted with Tom from Newcastle who had chosen Tomakin as a stop for his mobile home, appropriately called ‘Living The Dream’. We thought this very appropriate, as we were ‘Living The Dream’ on a small budget and only ten minutes from home.There are tables and benches at the point for you to sit and enjoy your thermos.Back down the lookout hill, we headed to the Tomakin Sports and Social Club in Sunpatch Parade, for a cool drink. It was Wednesday and a well-attended bingo morning was just concluding. A cool drink at the bar and we were on our way but not before checking the budget meal of the day…a whole $3.00 which even our budget could cover. Today it was Roast Beef and Yorkshire Pudding or Honey Glazed Chicken Wings or Cheesy Vegetable Lasagne, wow!Luscious cakes and desserts are also available as well as tea and coffee.The budget lunch is available Monday through to Thursday, a great little restaurant to discover for the budget conscious.A walk by Jack Buckley Park, located beside the Tomago River finished our day nicely. There was a lot happening on the river. Small ‘tinny’ fishing boats cruising up and down, folk with hand lines, some looking triumphant, some not!There is more to this village than originally thought, no wonder the locals love the peace and serenity but there is a real community spirit alive here which is so great to see. So for your next budget day out, why not slip into the village of Tomakin, you might get a surprise….oh and don’t forget the thermos!

Comments for Tantalising Tomakin

Found this page while looking for history of Tomakin. The statement "- named for a local fisherman THOMAS AKIN" suggests the writer didn't look very far for said history. It is unfortunate when misinformation is carelessly distributed.